


Welcome to the Club - we have horrible Christmas music and sweaters

by Catsarecutebutaliens



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Bisexual Brunnhilde | Valkyrie (Marvel), Bisexual Pepper Potts, Bisexual Tony Stark, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Music, Coming Out, F/M, Fanart Included, Fluff, Infinity War never happened, Lots of christmas feels, Mentions of alcohol, Nothing major though, Pepperony Secret Santa 2018, Post-Thor: Ragnarok (2017), Secret Santa, Some angst, They are all bi and there is nothing you can do about it, Tony Stark has ADHD, Valkyrie wears a christmas sweater, a WHOLE lot of fluff, it is not explicitly mentioned but my Tony has always adhd so live with it, oh i almost forgot, talking about coming out
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-20 03:21:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17014683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Catsarecutebutaliens/pseuds/Catsarecutebutaliens
Summary: Curiosity always gets you in trouble - but sometimes good things happen as well.





	Welcome to the Club - we have horrible Christmas music and sweaters

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ElphieRix](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElphieRix/gifts).



> Hello everyone! This beautiful piece of writing is a secret santa gift for elphieRix.  
> I have actually no idea how this happened, it was supposed to be between 1,000 and 1,500 words  
> and when I had reached that wordcount I was only halfway through the story.  
> Also, this contains a drawing of Val in her Christmas sweater made by a wonderful friend on Discord  
> and the link to said bad Christmas song.  
> I hope you all enjoy this and Happy Holidays!

The first thing she heard was terrible Christmas music and the second his laughter. Both seemed to originate from the living room, and for a moment she considered simply leaving him to whatever company he was in, except then she caught her name.

Now, Pepper Potts has never been a particularly curious person. Curiosity always got you in trouble some way or another, and she had seen a lot more than she had wanted to by going against her logical instincts.  
Said things were mostly naked people, both from the back and the front, plus Tony in a tight, dark green dress, which had looked surprisingly good on him. 

So hearing her name in a conversation Tony was involved in, either meant he was gushing about her again or he was planning something which would blow up in her face sooner or later. Maybe even quite literally.

Better safe than sorry, she thought to herself and made a beeline for the door, the papers she needed Steve to sign still in her hands.  
The unholy version of Holy Night became louder with every step, and she wondered what hellhole he had found it in. Another thing to have JARVIS ban from their joined Christmas music playlist. She was going to have him put it right next to Last Christmas, some songs simply shouldn't be heard.

Pepper swung open the door and entered the already for the holiday's decorated room, followed by the staccato of her heels. 

Tony was sitting on the couch, a mug with what was either coffee or alcohol-free mulled wine in his hand. Their whole fridge was full of cartons of the latter, and they had to buy new ones every three days since Thor apparently bathed in it. Either that or the god had an unnatural obsession with mulled wine. Pepper didn't know what would be worse.

Next to him, in what looked suspiciously like one of Tony's sweaters, was Valkyrie, holding a glass of eggnog, judging by the color. While Tony had sworn off drinking months ago, Val was still working on it and didn't plan on ever being completely abstinent. The two of them had formed an unlikely friendship after Thor had introduced the people of Asgard to earth. While the majority of them were living their lives in New York and the surrounding area, still causing her a hell of paperwork, Val had decided to move in with them and live in the tower. 

Long story short, she and Tony were basically best buddies now and besides stealing each other's clothes spend a lot of time working in the lab next to Bruce and Peter and, on some days, Thor.

In the end, it shouldn't have been surprising to see her in Tony's clothes drinking eggnog at three in the afternoon while listening to awful music about a holiday she had only found out about roughly five weeks ago.  
Still, the picture made her stop in her tracks and wish for JARVIS to take a photograph. Maybe he would.

"... Y'know, I'm pretty sure she'd kill you if you did that." Val laughed and continued to do so even after having spotted Pepper in the doorway.

"Kill you if I found out what?" Pepper asked back and walked closer to sit down next to Tony on the couch before pressing a quick kiss onto his cheek.  
Neither of the two was startled by her sudden appearance, and he promptly put an arm around her waist to draw her closer. In response she let her fingers comb through his hair.

"What are you doing here? I thought you had some unfinished business with Steve." He gestured at the papers in her hand, trying to change the topic. She only rolled her eyes, a smile tugging on her lips, and put them down onto the table. 

While he wasn't wrong and she did need to talk to the Captain, it was everything but urgent and also a Sunday, the only day of the week she tried to avoid everything work related as much as possible. That attitude was also visible in her more than casual outfit. Val was not the only one to raid Tony's closet on a regular basis, so she was drowning in a warm, fluffy sweater he had originally stolen from Rhodey.

"It can wait. I'm more interested in what you two are talking about. Oh, and J, please change this horrible song, my ears are dying over here."

Pepper let herself fall into his side and pulled her heeled legs up onto the couch as well. With a much better sounding song drifting through the room the holiday feeling settled around them like a familiar blanket, ridding her of any bad thoughts and dampening the stress.

"Well, we were just talking about some... presents. For the public." Tony added after a few heartbeats of silence. Valkyrie snorted in response and downed the liquid in her glass in one go, her hand already stretching for the bottle on the table.

"I doubt the majority would see it as a present, Stark, after everything you've told me. Like I said, even Pepper would shred you to pieces. Though for a different reason."

"If you two don't tell me what this is about I might actually attack someone."

Pepper gently nudged his side with her elbow and took the like cinnamon and clove smelling cup out of his hand to take a sip. Yep, definitely glogg. She enjoyed their banter and company a whole lot and pressed the cup back into his hands to undo her shoes and let them drop to the floor. As much as she loved her high-heels, they always hurt her feet after a while and were not welcome on any cushions.

"So, what's this about? I heard you say my name earlier."

Val kicked him with her foot and almost caused both their drinks to spill when he still didn't answer. After some mild muttered swearing on his side, he sighed and finally responded. His fingers were tapping slow rhythms on her thigh and joined the beat of the melody being played.

"It's nothing, really. I was just thinking about officially coming out to the public as bi, have a little fun, make it a big thing. Sure, it's widely known I've had flings with men, but I have never put a label onto it."

There was uncertainty in his voice, and when he saw Pepper's eyebrows knitting together in thought, the first sparks of doubt started pushing their way up his throat.

The fact that he was bisexual was nothing new to Pepper, she had guessed it after hearing about his one-night-stands and known once she saw the first man coming out of his bedroom. After getting together, he had told her about Rhodey and him in college and put a label onto it, just like he wanted to do now. 

It had never been an issue at any point for either of them. To keep it a secret from the public, or better never outright confirm it, had been his idea and decision for the most part. Coming out would cause an uproar and she knew that he knew that as well. Especially around Christmas, they had to be careful with information like this to keep conservatives off their asses for the most part. The last time he had done something stupid during December, she hadn't been able to enjoy any of the festive activities he had planned for her.

"Look, I can see how important this is for you, but can't you at least wait until New Year's? We both know what happened last time."

"Pep, I love you, but if I want to do it know it is my decision."

She held back the snarky comment that had popped into her mind and settled for a sigh. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes for a second and opened them again once the right words had formed in her mouth.  
The tapping on her thigh had stopped, and his fingers were now busy scratching the ceramic of his mug. His hands were always doing something, never standing still. She barely even noticed it anymore.

"Of course it is your decision. That's not the point. I want to enjoy this, the time with you and everyone else. I want one normal, quiet Christmas. No abductions, no death, no press waiting to rip me to shreds in an interview. Is that really too much to ask for?"

Her tone stayed soft the whole time, maybe a tiny bit too annoyed for her own good, but beside her, Tony grew stiffer with every word and eventually fled her touch to look her in the eye.

The fire crackled and burned, snow fell outside the window without a sound, and the music continued to lazily drift through the room. She could hear their breathing, three heartbeats beating at different paces, her own heart pounding in her chest. A fight was the last thing she wanted, especially about something like this, not around this time, not now. This afternoon was supposed to be nice and easy and nothing else.

"Pepper."

Tony was warning her, telling her to stop, to drop the topic, and he looked at her almost beggingly. Behind him, Val finished another glass of eggnog and opted for keeping the bottle instead of filling up her glass once more. Her own need for a drink grew with every passing second.

A pressure she was all too familiar with was building up in her chest, and she dug her fingernails into the fabric of her pants to keep it under control.

"It just feels right to do it now. We are getting married next year, and I want everything to be out in the open by then. No more secrets. You don't get that, do you." 

It wasn't a question, and she didn't take it as one, though anger was blossoming in her stomach. All Pepper did though was breathe, in and out, again and again until the tension started slipping away. She needed to solve this now before it escalated.

The conversation wasn't a new one, but this time he seemed particularly set on going through with it, which was most likely Valkyrie's influence on him. She was out and proud, if you could call it that, and didn't give a fuck about the thoughts of humans. Women and men often left her room in the morning, most of them Asgardian, some human. Every so often one of them stayed for breakfast. 

Val and Tony had talked a lot about their experiences and thoughts on being bisexual and shared not only their sexuality but other traits as well. Pepper had never tried to join in on these conversations, had never dared to force herself into this part of his life and shoved her own feelings into the closet they had been staying in since High School. She knew, and that was enough for her, so her understanding of why exactly he wanted to tell the whole goddamn world was limited.

"I don't want this to blow up on us Tony, not now, not with the press.  
Can't you just-"

"No, I can't, for fuck's sake," he interrupted her, his voice just a tick too loud. Valkyrie straightened up behind him and reached out to put a hand on his shoulder to try and calm him down, but he shrugged her off. Rolling her eyes, she leaned back once again and watched the scene unfold while occasionally taking a sip from the bottle.

"This is a decision I have put off for too long, and I am so SICK of it. You should try to understand that instead of being selfish and-"

"Selfish?" It was her turn to interrupt him, and she did as she jumped off the couch, the restless energy taking over her body.

"I am trying to protect you, to protect us. Yeah, I don't get it. I have never told anyone in my LIFE I'm attracted to women and - oh. "

Sudden quiet befell her as she realized what she had just, not yelled, but very loudly said into the room. Pepper let her face fall into her hands, and she ran them through her hair twice before looking at Tony, her eyes roaming over his body to avoid looking at his eyes.

"I'm sorry. I was being an ass and you don't deserve that. I'm just gonna- I have to see Steve anyway so I will just-" Instead of finishing her sentence she gestured at the papers and then the door before bending down to pick up her shoes and grab the sheets of the table. The carpet felt soft under her feet, and the music was suddenly too loud for the silent room.

Tony and she didn't fight very often, and she hated it when they did. Sometimes it was over unnecessary things like the color of their new sofa, other times over important things. The latter was prone to blowing up before they could settle on a compromise and she hated that phase with a passion. Leaving him alone usually helped both of them to calm down, and after everything that had just been said it seemed like the best option once again. She regretted coming into the room more and more with every passing second.

Pepper made it a few steps before he softly grabbed her wrist to hold her back. She let herself be turned around and returned the soothing kiss he pressed to her lips.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you. I was already kinda nervous about this whole thing, and you struck a nerve; I will do better next time." His big brown eyes lost themselves in hers, and she knew he was being serious. Tony never sulked for long and always tried to fix what they broke.

They stared at each other for a while and took in the warmth they radiated.  
Once again, Pepper focused on keeping her breathing even and calming down.  
Before she could even open her mouth to say something in return, Valkyrie very dramatically imitated vomiting onto the carpet and gracefully jumped over the back of the couch to leave, the bottle still in her hand. 

"'Gonna leave you two to it, this is getting too lovey-dovey. Welcome to the Bi-Club, Potts, see you later."

Having reached the doorframe in what seemed like seconds, she hovered there for a second and looked back over her shoulder.

"Oh, and please, if you fuck, lock the door. We don't want another Thor and Bruce situation."

The sound of the closing door slowly faded from the room.

With Val gone, Tony tugged her back to the sofa and pulled her into his arms so she could rest her head on his shoulder.  
They were quiet for a minute until Tony carefully spoke up again, his voice just above a whisper.

"So, you're also bi then?"

Pepper sighed again, a tired sigh this time. This hadn't gone as planned at all.

"Yeah. I've known since I was thirteen, though it has never really been relevant. I had a girlfriend in college for a few months and I never even told her I was bi. It didn't change anything then, and it won't change anything now."

With her secret out she felt - better. Surprisingly so maybe keeping it a secret had taken a greater toll on her than she had imagined. Her reasoning for keeping it a secret has been quite tenuous in the first place.

Tony pressed a kiss to her temple and lightly moves his hand up and down her arm. 

"You're right, it won't change anything. Except now we can talk about hot women together. You think Val would wanna join us in the bedroom?"

They both started laughing, light and genuine, and she playfully slapped his arm. The papers in her hand had fallen to the floor minutes ago, Steve could definitely wait a little longer.

Driving home for Christmas was playing now and the festive feeling from before settled in again, making her yawn with exhaustion. A short glance at the clock told her it was only four in the afternoon, but she felt ready to go to sleep. A nap had never hurt anyone, after all.

Cuddling up even more with her love, she let her eyes fall closed and drifted off to his soft humming and heartbeat pulsating under her hand.

**Author's Note:**

> As promised:
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mk4woNRD7NQ
> 
> https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/507558056406810624/523606771756040194/image0.jpg
> 
> Thank you for reading!


End file.
